- Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber has praised right-hand man Mzwandile Stick's influence in domestic rugby's improved quality from last season's Currie Cup.
- The off-the-ball guru actively took a lead in coming up with intervention plans as well as providing guidance and feedback to the players.
- But Nienaber also noted that the whole local rugby fraternity played their respective roles, particularly the referees and franchise coaches.
The improved quality of rugby on show in the Rainbow Cup has been a collective effort, but Jacques Nienaber, the Springbok coach, believes his right-hand man Mzwandile Stick has been one of the catalysts.
Criticism of the standard of play was rife earlier this year at the conclusion of the Currie Cup as numerous observers and supporters bemoaned the stop-start nature of the tournament.
Average ball-in-play statistics dropped to as low as 26 minutes per game.
Taking the lead, Stick, who focuses on off-the-ball play, worked tirelessly to set the process of remedying the situation in motion.
"I really have to take my hat off to Mzwandile," said Nienaber.
"He did a lot of hard work in terms of designing intervention plans for the players and providing great feedback when we spoke to some of the players at the year's first alignment camp.
"It was very important for him that the players improve their so-called battle rate - the manner in which players go into 'battles' on the field - and how they can work on that. The improvement was massive."
Rassie Erasmus, the national director of rugby, was the first representative from SA Rugby to express his concerns in announcing the preparation series that kicked off the new season.
But Nienaber admits he was having a few restless nights too.
"We were a bit worried after the Currie Cup when we compared our ball-in-play time and intensity to the (English) Premiership and PRO14. When we look at it now, there's some really good parity," he said.
"It was nice to see after the preparation series how it was really a joint effort."
In fact, the 48-year-old argues there was a distinct re-kindling of the "Stronger Together" philosophy that characterised the Springboks' World Cup-winning campaign of 2019.
"There was that type of vibe. The franchise coaches and players bought into it, we as national coaches did and the referees did their part too. We as a fraternity identified the problem and worked towards rectifying it," said Nienaber.
"The referee department deserves credit too. The referees have managed the stop-clocks well in terms of goal-kicking, they've handled the scrums well and have actively officiated in a manner that encourages as little ball out-of-play time as possible.
"The franchises have taken it to heart. We're seeing encouraging results."